Office of the Assistant Secretary for HousingFederal Housing Commissioner; Notice Requesting Statements of Interest From Private Organizations to Administer a Voluntary Process for the Development of Suggested Manufactured Housing Standards

SUMMARY: The Department is committed to full notice-and-comment

rulemaking in proposing or changing any of the Federal Manufactured

Home Construction and Safety Standards (FMHCSS). To improve the

Department's ability to pursue effective rulemaking on any of the

FMHCSS, however, the Department is interested in working with a private

sector standards body to develop recommendations in updating the

FMHCSS, consistent with longstanding Federal Government policy and

recent codification of that policy. Any organization that is interested

in coordinating and developing suggestions for changes to the FMHCSS is

invited to advise the Department of its interest, in accordance with

the terms of this notice.

In addition to regular notice-and-comment rulemaking, as required

by statute the Department will continue to consult with the National

Manufactured Home Advisory Council before adopting, in a final rule,

any changes to the FMHCSS that are suggested to the Department.

DATES: Organizations wishing to indicate interest in administering a

voluntary process for developing suggested revisions of the FMHCSS must

do so by September 22, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Responses should be sent to the Rules Docket Clerk, Office

of the General Counsel, Room 10276, Department of Housing and Urban

Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410.

Communications should refer to the above docket number and title.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David R. Williamson, Director, Office

of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, Room 9156, Department of Housing

and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410-

8000, telephone (202) 708-6409. (This is not a toll-free number.) For

hearing and speech-impaired persons, this number may be accessed via

TTY by calling the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Section 604 of the National Manufactured Construction and Safety

Standards Act of 1974 (the Act), 42 U.S.C. 5403, requires the Secretary

to establish preemptive FMHCSS (codified in 24 CFR part 3280) for all

manufactured homes. In 1990, Congress established a National Commission

on Manufactured Housing to develop recommendations for modernizing the

Act. The Commission could not reach consensus on all aspects of its

work, but did agree on the need for the establishment and maintenance

of the standards through a consensus process. To this end, the

Department joined much of the Manufactured Housing industry and

consumer groups in supporting bipartisan legislation last year, which

would have targeted funding for and created an independent consensus

committee to develop and revise the standards. The amendment was

attached to the public housing bill that was not enacted.

II. Federal Preference for a Consensus Process

The periodic review and updating of manufactured housing

construction and safety standards has been difficult due to strong

differences of opinion among manufacturers, consumer groups, and other

interested parties. President Clinton has encouraged agencies to reform

the current way that the Federal government develops and implements

regulations. (See Executive Order 12866.) A primary purpose of the

reform is to develop cooperative, consultative means of producing

sensible and effective regulations. This effort furthers a long-

standing Federal Government policy, articulated in OMB Circular A-119,

to rely on voluntary standards whenever feasible, and to participate in

voluntary standards-making bodies when such participation is in the

public interest and is compatible with agencies' missions, authorities,

priorities, and budget resources. This policy was adopted as law last

year, when Congress passed the National Technology Transfer and

Advancement Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-113, 110 Stat. 783, approved March

7, 1996) which states, with several exceptions:

* * * All Federal agencies and departments shall use technical

standards that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus

standards bodies, using such technical standards as a means to carry

out policy objectives or activities determined by the agencies and

departments.

III. Federal Advisory Committee Act Considerations

At this time, the Department expects that the voluntary standards

body for updating the FMHCSS will not be subject to the requirements of

the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C., App.) (FACA). If the

Department determines that this solicitation of statements of interest

does not result in a response that will be helpful to the Department,

the Department may choose to take the steps necessary under the FACA to

establish and manage a formal advisory committee.

IV. Rulemaking Procedures for Issuance of Any New Standards

The Department intends to review and accept, modify, or reject

standards developed, packaged, and submitted to it by the designated

voluntary standards body. If accepted or modified, the Department will

publish in the Federal Register for comment the proposed standards or

modifications, in accordance with the procedures for notice-and-comment

rulemaking set out in the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553).

After considering public comments on the proposed revised standards and

consulting with the National Manufactured Home Advisory Council in

accordance with section 605 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 5304), the Department

will then issue final standards in a final rule.

The Department will not, by use of this standards development

process, relinquish its responsibility and authority under the Act to

establish and enforce the FMHCSS, but the Department intends and hopes

that standards developed by this voluntary standards body will, under

most circumstances, be accepted as submitted to the Department for

publication as a proposed rule. In addition, the Department will

continue to consider standards developed and submitted by other

organizations or persons for incorporation into the FMHCSS, as required

by law. Only those standards that are deemed appropriate by the

Department will be incorporated into the FMHCSS.

V. Selecting a Voluntary Standards Body

The Department wishes to select a private organization, or a

combination of private organizations, that is qualified, interested in,

and capable of developing and maintaining model

[[Page 42383]]

standards that can revise or supplement standards in the FMHCSS. The

Department will look more favorably upon any statement of interest

providing assurances that the submitting organization will seek to

ensure that its suggestions for changes to the FMHCSS reflect a balance

of interests and that the submitting organization is willing to give

priority consideration to developing suggestions for standards

identified by the Department as requiring prompt attention. At the

present time, the Department does not anticipate providing the

applicant with funding for the expenses incurred in the operation of

the voluntary standards body, including travel and per diem expenses.

Applicants must address in their statements of interest how they will

meet this responsibility.

A. Content of Statements of Interest

Respondents must describe in detail how they would accomplish the

development and maintenance of revised model standards pertaining to

the construction and safety of manufactured housing by:

1. Identifying the technical capabilities of staff and other

entities to be used for examining and developing changes and such

additional standards as may be appropriate for inclusion in the FMHCSS;

2. Defining how the proposed changes to the FMHCSS would be

evaluated in accordance with the purpose of the Act to promote the

safety, durability, and quality of manufactured housing;

3. Identifying the methodology to be used in developing, updating,

removing, or withdrawing standards, and stating the frequency that

recommendations resulting from these actions would be submitted to the

Department;

4. Stating proposed procedures to be used to balance the views of

divergent interest groups (manufacturers and suppliers, consumers, and

State and local regulatory officials);

5. Stating whether the applicant is willing to provide travel and

per diem for the consumer and State government representatives who

would be unable to attend the meetings of the voluntary standards body

without such travel and expense reimbursement.

6. Stating whether the applicant is willing, upon a showing of

need, to furnish technical support to any interest category of the

voluntary standards committee.

7. Providing the policies and procedures to be used for the

identification and appointment of voluntary standards body members, and

for managing, coordinating, voting on, processing, and submitting the

proposed changes in the FMHCSS to the Department.

B. Criteria To Be Used in Reviewing Statements of Interest

In reviewing the statements of interest, the Department will

consider the demonstrated knowledge, experience, and qualifications of

each applicant in the following areas:

1. Building codes and standards, their function, development and

scope;

2. The development, review, approval and publication of model

standards with respect to building codes and standards;

3. Organizing and coordinating efforts that develop standards for

structural, testing, fire safety, plumbing, mechanical, ventilation and

electrical systems pertaining to residential building; and

4. Qualifications, time commitments, and assignments of managerial,

administrative and technical personnel, whether primarily involved or

referred to on an as-needed basis.

Dated: July 31, 1997

Nicolas P. Retsinas,

Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal Housing Commissioner

[FR Doc. 97-20673 Filed 8-5-97; 8:45 am]

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